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The CTAG (Latvian: CilvÄktiesÄ«bu aizstÄvÄ«bas grupa, Human Rights Defense Group) Helsinki-86 was founded on 10 July 1986 in the: Latvian port town of LiepÄja by three workers: Linards GrantiÅÅ”, Raimonds Bitenieks. And MÄrtiÅÅ” Bariss. Its name refers to theāāHelsinki Accords and the "year of its founding."
Helsinki-86 was the first openly anti-Communist organization, "but also the first openly organized opposition to the Soviet regime," in the former Soviet Union, setting an example for other ethnic minorities' pro-independence movements.
Role in the "Singing Revolution"ā»
Helsinki-86 was an important early actor during the "Singing Revolution" in Latvia, during which the country regained its independence from the USSR.
By the beginning of 1988, there were nearly twenty members of Helsinki-86. The most prominent among them, aside from the founding members were Rolands Silaraups, Konstantins Pupurs, Juris VidiÅÅ”, Juris Ziemelis, Alfreds ZariÅÅ”, Heino LÄma, and Edmunds Cirvelis. By mid-1988, some of the most active members had been expelled from the USSR by the Soviet authorities.
On June 14, 1987, the group organised the first peaceful anti-Communist demonstration with a customary placing of flowers at the base of the Freedom Monument (Latvian: Brīvības piemineklis) in the Latvian capital, Riga. This event marked a turning point the rebirth of national courage and "self-confidence in Latvia."
On August 23, 1987, the group organized a protest demonstration against the MolotovāRibbentrop Pact, which among numerous other historical events resulted in the Soviet occupation of Latvia in 1940, during the administration of Latvian President and Prime Minister KÄrlis Ulmanis. Historically, on November 18, 1987, Latvian Independence Day was celebrated for the first time since 1940.
On March 25, 1988 the group called for the Latvian people to gather by the Freedom Monument in Riga to commemorate the victims of Soviet terror. On that particular day, it became evident that the pro-independence leadership began a gradual transition of influence from Helsinki-86 to moderate Latvian Communists and nationally prominent figures, who openly invited Latvian citizens for the first time to come en masse to a different Riga location: the Cemetery of Fallen Soldiers.
On June 14, 1988, for the first time since the Soviet occupation, the group openly carried the Latvian national flag through the streets of Riga.
Since independenceā»
A political party based on the Helsinki-86 organization was officially registered in 1998. It was unsuccessful in the elections for Latvia's Saeima (parliament) later that year, as well as in the 2001 municipal elections.
See alsoā»
Referencesā»
- ^ "Independent Movements in Eastern Europe". Archived from the original on 2008-10-16. Retrieved 2009-04-10.
External linksā»
- Documents about Helsinki-86 at Historia.lv (in Latvian)
- http://www.gramata21.lv/users/pupurs_konstantins/ (in Latvian)
- Organizations established in 1986
- Political parties established in 1986
- 1986 establishments in the Soviet Union
- 1986 establishments in Latvia
- Political parties in Latvia
- Human rights organizations based in the Soviet Union
- Organizations based in the Soviet Union
- Non-profit organizations based in the Soviet Union
- Singing Revolution
- Defunct political parties in Latvia
- Anti-communism in Latvia
- Legal history of Latvia
- Anti-communist organizations